I have the small cooler, not these drink cups with plastic covers. Those would be pointless since the heat will come in through the cover.

I traveled from San Jose to Las Vegas and there was still a lot of ice, in contrast to my small Coleman...

But you are right, they do spend a lot in marketing. I'm sure if a no-name company builds one with the same level of insulation and sealing, it will be just as good but very cheap. In fact, RTIC was one, until Yeti sued them for copying the designs.

Whilst driving near work the other day on a local "motor mile"- I noticed a YETI dealership. It was somewhere in between the Subaru Dealer and the Ford dealer. It was a big friggin LED sign with crazy wavy arm thingees all around.

As I drove by, I was wishing I had my camera to post this to PPOT pics you have taken.

edit- I will drive by this place next week, and perhaps mount my go-pro onto my head and do a walk through so we can break up into discussion groups.

My BIL is way into Yeti products, although he does tend to fall every slick advertising gimmick that comes along, and seems to have so much money, that he doesn't need to be concerned with getting royally screwed.

The coffee cups are well worth the price. I drink my coffee slow and need it to stay warm for 2hrs. I wouldn’t pay for the thermos though. $25 for a good coffee cup is easy to justify. $500 for a thermos doesn’t make sense to me.

I know this got "bumped" from from the bots, but thought I'd provide an update anyway. I ended up with an RTIC 45 in tan. Purchased direct from RTIC for $189.99 including shipping. It's one of the newer versions, post Yeti lawsuit, and I love it!!! Pre-chilled it the night before my trip and it kept 25-30 pounds of ice, with minimal melt, for the four days we camped at VIR. I left it in my garage with whatever ice it still had for a few more days and there were still cubes floating around in the cold water!!! Inside dimensions are tight, but with careful packing I was able to fit all the food and beer I intended to bring. Additionally, it fits in the backseat area of my 993.

I'd like to add one of their soft coolers (maybe the 30) to my kit. Then I could use the hard for food and the soft for drinks.

__________________
-jeff
back in the saddle: '95 993 - just another black C2
*SOLD*: '87 930 GP White - heroin would have been a cheaper addiction..."Ladies and Gentlemen, from Boston Massachusetts, we are Morphine, at your service..." - Mark Sandman (RIP)

I also purchased the stainless security lock bar (also fits Yeti) and a 15 foot cable (12mm diameter) that I wrapped around a tree next to our camp site. Provided peace of mind as we were away from our site for several hours each day, walking around the track.

__________________
-jeff
back in the saddle: '95 993 - just another black C2
*SOLD*: '87 930 GP White - heroin would have been a cheaper addiction..."Ladies and Gentlemen, from Boston Massachusetts, we are Morphine, at your service..." - Mark Sandman (RIP)

I bought a Yeti this spring because it was a perfect fit into a compartment in my boat. The cooler is hard mounted and drains to the bilge, despite the stupid price I managed to find a Yeti that was the perfect size. It's in a storage compartment under a seat that gets HOT and has zero air circulation, for a long lake weekend it keeps usable ice for a solid three days, which is good enough for me. I can't say I'm blown away by it, but it does a much better job than any other cooler I've owned.